What It Means
by Aspirant22
Summary: Rated for mature language, violence, and possible adult themes. LacroixXOC begins chpt3. More summery inside. This is my first fic so reviews/criticism would be greatly appreciated.
1. To Be A Vampire

Disclaimer: I own nothing from Vampire The Masquerade: Bloodlines.

Summery: A girl is embraced for unknown reasons and she must learn the ways of this vampire society. However, Sabbot antribu is on the rise which threatens the stability the clans provide.

My throat tightened. My gums throbbed around my teeth. A scathing, white conflagration ignited inside of my skull. High voltage currents ripped through my nerves, throwing me into paroxysm. My lungs choked on breathless gasps as my upper body convulsed into an upright position. My hand clenched around something and shoved it into my mouth. My teeth bit down on the object and liquid shot from punctures they had made. I gorged frantically on the sour, metallic liquid. The article shrank in my grasp and the flow of whatever it contained dwindled. Hysteria consumed me; no more of the substance would come from the item and all of my instincts screamed for more. I raised my eyes and hackles to my surroundings. My eyes scoured the red hazed room for any possible threats. Sensing no danger, my attention flew to the object in my hand. It was a bag of some sort. My mind couldn't register more than that. It couldn't identify such specifics. But what ever had been in that bag, my body begged for more. Pain seared my nerves. The inferno intensified its cauterizing blaze. Agitated, a pained and frustrated growl welled up from inside my throat and I searched desperately for more of these mysterious bags. My hands thrashed for anything around me and one hit itself against a large, cold box. Vaguely, I recalled that the box opened when you pulled at the side of it. My body jerked itself onto my knees, gripped the side of the box and flung it open with unnecessary force. Deposits of the mysterious bags awaited inside the box. Euphoria and ecstasy beyond mortal comprehension lifted my soul as I drained them all, one by one. Dropping the final bag, my body slumped against the cool box, settling in a state of rapture and bliss. The substance diffused throughout my body, quelling the chaos that had ensued. The burning in my head had extinguished and the electricity stopped tearing through my nerves. My erratic breathing began to slow down and my muscles became lethargic with lactic acid. My mind submerged into somnolence as I let the world fall away.

When I awoke again, I felt like I had sprinted through a 20 mile marathon. I was sore everywhere and dead tired. I rubbed the sleep from my eyes and opened them. I was sitting on a kitchen floor, leaning on a refrigerator. Confused, I moved to get up. My hand pressed against something on the floor and I looked to see what it was. My sleepy daze evaporated as I began to register what it was. It was a blood bag. Except, it had no blood in it. Instead, it had a gnarled hole on the side and black crust all over it. Horrified, I scanned the rest of the kitchen floor and saw more torn up blood bags. I wanted to scream but my throat was too dry to muster any volume. Instead, I used the wall and the refrigerator as support to help myself up. My body protested with screaming joint pain and soreness that flared everywhere, but I pushed through it and stood upright. Gasping in pain, I stumbled to the counter across from me. Well, more like 'fell' to the counter, catching myself with it. My feet threatened to slip on the plastic bags and, had it not been for the counter, I'd have fallen.

I whimpered, scared. _Where am I?, _I thought. I looked around my surroundings some more. I was in a small apartment. The windows had old wooden boards over them. Dark green paint crusted off of the walls. An old bed with stained mattresses on it sat in the far corner of the apartment. Opposite of the bed, but on the same side of the apartment, was a rusted metal desk with a laptop. Across from that, stood a small dresser with a rabbit-eared television on top. I turned to look at the rest of the kitchen behind me. The cupboard doors were barely attached to their hinges and some doors were even missing. Nothing appeared to be inside them.

Turning my head back to the apartment while trying not to look at the kitchen floor, I stumbled toward the computer. _Maybe I can at least find out what time it is._ It wasn't a long walk; the apartment was very small, but when I sat at the desk, I felt exhausted. Shaking, I opened the laptop and green, pixel letters showed me a list of options. I looked everywhere on the screen, but I couldn't find the time._ Isn't the time supposed to be at the bottom of the screen or something?_ None of the corners displayed the time. Giving up on that, I focused more on the list of options. Hell, not even 'Internet' was available. Only 'home', 'quit', and 'email' were displayed. Sighing, I clicked the email option, hoping for at least an inkling as to where I was. The screen changed. Now, it was asking for a password. Frustrated, I attempted to turn away from the computer, but my lack of energy only let me turn my upper body. I blinked back tears. _What if somebody finds me in here? What if they're just outside the door? What if they were the ones who brought me here? What if-- _Stop. If I continue the stream of what if's, I'll only make myself more afraid and I'll never be able to find out what's going on. I take a moment to calm down. Wiping my tears away with a shaky hand, I scan the desk top. My eyes fall on a piece of paper with hand writing on it and I picked it up.

Dear kid, this is your new apartment. I left some 'necessities' in the fridge. The password to your new email is Sunrise. I'd recommend checking it. My name is Mercurio and I'm gunna drop by later to explain things and drop some of your stuff off. I'm your friend, and as your friend, I'm tellin' you to stay indoors. You'll be a lot safer that way. Just sit tight 'til I get there.

Mercurio

Shock and fear engulfed me as I reread the letter for the third time. This character named Mercurio is on his way here. What am I to expect? Did this person kidnap me? He said that this is my new apartment and that he would be dropping my things off. So he knew where I lived and where my things were? How? Did someone I know give him my address? I don't know anybody from this city. I just moved here, so that couldn't be the case. I didn't even send in my job application to the office I was looking into, so he didn't get my information that way. He said he left some necessities in the refrigerator. Goosebumps raised on the back of my neck as I thought back to the blood bags on the floor. _Those?_ I shook my head, trying to get rid of the thought of them. _I'm not going to get any answers by just sitting here._

Mustering the energy, I lifted my hand back to the mouse, clicked the password box and entered 'Sunrise'. The computer accepted it and several more options came up. Before I could click the first one, I heard a knock from behind me. I immediately tensed with fright and tears started to rise from behind my eyes. I waited a moment, hoping they would go away, but they just knocked again and a mumble from behind the door said,

"Kid, you there? It's me Mercurio." Mercurio. He's the one that wrote the letter. He said he would explain things but how do I know he isn't the one who brought me here? I shook my head again. I needed to get some answers and he promised he would give me them. I summoned what little strength and courage I had left and responded.

"...M-Mercurio?" I whimpered. I started to shake again. Tears started to fall but I wiped them away as quickly as I could. Mercurio opened the door and stepped in, carrying a large duffel bag and a cooler. He closed the door with his foot and set the bag and cooler down on the floor beside the door. He turned his attention to me,

"You, you're uh... the kid, right?" Taking in my appearance, he added, "Aw shit, kid. I should'a known you'd be scared to death waking up in a place you don't recognize." He shifted onto one leg and scratched the back of his neck. "A'right, kid...Uhm... Don't be scared. I'm here to help. I'm gunna sit down and help you get things straightened out. That okay?" He paused, waiting for my response. I nodded; anything to figure out where I am and why I'm here. He walked over toward me and sat on the corner of the bed. "Okay, first thing. Tell me what you remember so I know where to start re-cappin' ya." I inhaled and exhaled slowly, hoping my voice wouldn't shake when I finally spoke. It didn't work.

"...Umm, w-well. I...r-remember walking h-home from...college." The words sounded strained. I took another deep breath and waited until I stopped shivering. I exhaled and began again. "I remember walking home from college at around 8 pm." I swallowed. "I usually go a different direction than most, so I was alone. I began to sense I was being followed. I didn't think much of it." I regret that now. "Eventually, someone grabbed me and pulled me into an ally..." Fear crawled it's way up my spine and sent a shiver back down. I tried to continue but an ice cube began to form in my throat. I closed my eyes and took another deep breath, skipping _that_ part. "When I woke up, I found myself here. But... I couldn't control myself... Everything was in a red haze a-and I couldn't think and..." I glanced back to the kitchen and I shut my eyes tightly. After a long pause, Mercurio spoke.

"'Kay, kid... What's your name?"

"Ebony L'pree. People just call me Ebee."

"'Kay, Ebee." He began, then softened his tone. "I know this has been a rough ride for ya, but ya gotta bear with me here. I'm gunna tell you somethin' pretty crazy. Ready?" He waited until I nodded and he almost began again but he lowered his head in contemplation. "...Uh...Err...Hmm." After a moment, he resumed. "Okay," He began enthusiastically. "Take your thumb and put it under one of your canine teeth." He demonstrated using his own thumb and putting it under the tooth he mentioned. I did the same, but something I didn't expect happened. Mine was unusually long. Like... a fang. I looked at Mercurio in horror. "Okay, kid. Calm down and take a deep breath. Like a said, this get's pretty crazy." He waited until I had forced my face to relax. I looked at him intently and he continued. "That right there is your new set of teeth. You grew those. And those over there," He turned and waved the back of his hand to the empty blood bags. "Are blood bags. You remember 'em, right? You drank from 'em. You'll need to keep doing that if you wanna be healthy and that's puttin' it nicely."

I furrowed my brow and frowned. Is he suggesting that I'm some sort of vampire? Saying _that's crazy_ is an understatement, but I needed answers and maybe I could coerce some real ones from him. If he's crazy, I don't want to provoke him by telling him off so I calmly closed my eyes and exhaled. He waited.

"How long have I been here?" I began, starting with a simple question.

"'Bout a week now. I'm not surprised you frenzied. Most don't go that long without a swig."

"Frenzied?" I asked, dubious.

"Yeah, when a uh..." He paused. "When you go without a sip for a while you frenzy."

"Right. And, who are you, exactly?" I tried to keep as little doubt from my voice as possible.

"I'm a salesman of sorts, but I've been sent here by the big man himself to explain things to ya. You'll meet him soon enough."

"Who is he?"

"Don't worry about it. When you feel better I'll take you to go see him. That shouldn't be too long now, seeing as you drank a lot recently." He looked over toward the mess in the kitchen.

"Why am I here? Can't I go back to my own apartment?" Alarm seeped into my voice and I tried to suppress it.

"Well, I wouldn't recommend it. The guys runnin' the show relocated you so you could be closer to the headquarters. They'll probably give you a step-sire to help show ya the ropes, seeing as yours skipped out on ya, so you'll have to drop by to see 'em once and a while. Being on the other side of town might bring up some unnecessary problems when you travel back and forth between your other apartment and the office," He checked his watch. "Which brings me to my next point. When it's daylight, you don't wanna go outside. Only move around when it's nighttime or when you're in the shadows."

"Why?" I narrowed my eyes at him, expecting him to recite yet another vampire fun fact. He noticed my glare.

"Look kid, you wanna go try steppin' outside, be my guest. Maybe you'll learn by learnin' the hard way, but I'm tryin' to help ya learn the easy way and that's a favor most don't get." He growled.

"Now I'm assumin' you've concluded that you're a vampire. Well, you got that part right. You're a vamp now but you know less about 'em than you think. Most of the stupid shit like garlic, runnin' water, silver, and holy stuff is a load o' bull. The only things you need to worry about it stayin' outta sunlight, makin' sure you don't go thirsty, and not makin' an ass outta yourself. They've got a few rules goin' here and if you break 'em you're shit outta luck. Don't go around tellin' people you're a vamp, don't go pullin' off any vamp stunts in public and don't kill nobody. Basic stuff, right?" He dug into his pocket, pulled out a card, and handed it to me. "My card," He pointed to the luggage by the door. "Your stuff. Some blood. See ya at eight." He finished his rant and promptly left, looking annoyed.

I tossed his card on the desk and huffed. I just couldn't help being irritated at how unbelievable the whole mess was. A vampire? How ridiculous is that? I sighed. Well, that's what I wanted to think, but a part of me realized that this 'vampire' thing explained my episode the night before and why I was so thirsty now.

I prodded my tongue against the new set of teeth I had. They didn't budge or feel fake. They weren't that sharp either but my tongue started to get sore from trying to move them.

Looking back at the cooler, I thought about the blood that was inside. _If I had more, would that __make the pain go away?_ I licked my chapped lips and moved to get out of the chair. My joints, having settled into position, whined and cracked with the movement. I sat back into the chair, tired, and tried again but more slowly than the first attempt. _Baby steps_. I slowly made my way to the cooler. When I got there, I knelt down carefully and opened the cooler. It was half way filled with blood bags. Tentatively, I picked one up and stared at it. _How am I supposed to open it?_ I thought back to the empty plastic bags that littered the kitchen floor and shook my head. That's too messy. Instead, I decided to try and open it the way Sun Kiss pouches were opened. I put one fang near the top of the bag and applied pressure. Before I knew it, blood was oozing from the puncture. I quickly slurped up the up coming blood. What disturbed me was how delicious it was, despite being sour and cold.

When the bag was drained, I felt the effects immediately. The soreness in my muscles started to melt away and my joints began to loosen up. I even felt stronger and more energetic than ever. I was ashamed that it worked. Part of me wanted the blood to be gross and ineffective, and yet another part rejoiced and relished in content with the blood in my stomach. _I guess there's no denying it,_ I thought in defeat.

Sighing, I turned to the duffel bag that presumably contained my belongings. I looked inside and found most of my nondescript clothing and some toiletries. I grabbed a handful of clothing and buried my face inside the jumble. I found some solace at finding something familiar of mine, even if I bought these clothes upon my arrival to this city. Regrettably, I didn't bring any nicknacks or trinkets from home. Oh, how I missed home...

I sat there for sometime before I glanced back at the apartment. _What a mess._ I spent the next hour cleaning the kitchen and putting my things away. If I was going to stay here, I might as well make it feel like home. I reminded myself of the 'head quarters' I was stationed so closely to. If I was relocated because I was previously on the other side of town, that would mean I'm very far away from school. L.A is a big city after all. How was I supposed to get to school if it's so far away? Wait... School starts at 2 pm. That would mean that the sun would still be up. That guy Mercurio told me I couldn't be in the sun anymore. I slumped, depressed. I would have to drop out this semester because of this stupid vampire thing. Why did this happen? I wouldn't be able to ask Mercurio until he came back at eight.

I looked at my wrist watch. It read 12 pm. Great. What was I supposed to do until eight? I looked around. _Well, at least this place is cleaner_.

I had put my clothes away in the small dresser that stood across from the desk. The empty blood bags were no longer spread across the kitchen floor. I decided to use the cooler as a temporary trash bin until I could go out and buy one. The new blood bags were in the fridge. I put the large duffel bag under the bed, just to get it out of the way. The bathroom, which was on the other side of the kitchen, was fairly clean. The ceramic toilet and shower were just stained a light brown color, probably from age and rust. I had put my bag of toiletries in the sink. It mostly had the basics in there like hair lotions, brushes, blow dryer, etc.

To busy myself for the next few hours, I turned on the T.V. I mostly just mulled over what had become of me, trying to wrap my head around it. When seven rolled around, I thought I would gussy up before I met this 'boss' Mercurio talked about. I took a shower and put on some new clothes and make-up. As I put the make-up bag away in the rusted desk, I heard Mercurio at the door.

"You still in there, kid?" I opened the door. "Ready to go?" I nodded and stepped outside with him. I took in as many details as I could, to make mental notes as to where I now lived. The street sign read Horizon Street. The sign that stated the name of the apartment complex read 'Santa Monica Lofts' and an address number. The buildings around us looked kind of run down. Well, to be frank, it was a dump.

He led me to his car and I got in the passenger's side. After a little ways, he spoke, "Look, Ebee. Sorry, I left in a huff earlier. Breakin' in vamps isn't part of my job description." Then he added, "Plus, I'm not that great with kids." I sighed.

"I'm not a kid." He looked over at me briefly before returning his eyes to the road.

"Yeah, right. How old are you, 14?"

"I'm 18."

"Jesus!You're a little tyke ain't ya? That a medical condition you got goin' on or somthin'?" I knew I was small. At 4'11 and 95 lbs I couldn't blame him for being surprised.

"No. I'm just baby-faced. It runs in my family." And on that note, Mercurio found a space and parked. While he filled the meter, I looked around.

This side of the city was far more urban than the side that I had come from. The streets were busier and the buildings were taller. One of them, two blocks from where we stood, was exceptionally taller than the rest. It loomed over me, almost threatening to topple over, and I staggered backwards.

"Never been to the city have ya?" I turned back to him and swayed, dizzy from looking at the tower. "I'm guessing that's a no." He chuckled and walked past me, toward the tower. I hurried after him.

When we stepped through the rotating doors, I immediately felt out of place. From the marble floors to the chic furniture, this place was incredibly high class. The people who presumably worked here wore fancy business suits and even as they hustled to and fro, they all looked elegant and sophisticated. Whether they were arriving or leaving, they all had a destination, a place they needed to be. No one just stood around. That is, no except for me.

I snapped out of my thoughts and caught up with Mercurio. He approached a line of metal detectors and security guards. I watched him dig out a badge from his pocket and show it to one of the guards. "She's with me." The guard just nodded and let us through. Mercurio led us to a receptionist and he spoke with her. "Hi, I'm here to speak with Lacroix." He showed her the same badge he had shown the security guard. She glanced up briefly and touched the small head set on her ear.

"Sir, Mercurio is here. Would you like to see him? Yes, sir." She let go of the head set and went back to typing. "He's expecting you. I'll send for an elevator." She pressed a button on a panel beside her. "Elevator six. Have a good day."

"Thanks." We walked up a small set of curved stairs beside the reception desk and came to a long hall of elevators. One of them, toward the middle of the hall, opened and we stepped inside. Mercurio hit the Pent House button and the doors closed. When the elevator doors opened again, we stepped into a brightly lit Victorian hall way. The walls, a soft champagne color, had pure white borders. The toffee, glossy wooden floors adorned expensive looking carpets with tiny, baby blue flowers on the edges. Sand colored vines wove intricate yet subtle patterns in the middle of the carpets, interrupting their creamy, base color.

I looked up and saw Mercurio was already ahead of me again. I caught up to him with a few strides and we came to a pair of grand, white-wood doors with gold lined borders. He turned to me. "A'right. This guy's name is Sebastian Lacroix. He manages this company. Keep your answers short, and mind your manners." I nodded.

Mercurio tapped his knuckle on the door twice and a voice with a subtle, french accent told us to come in. Mercurio gripped the golden handles and opened the double doors. We were in a brightly lit office with a similar color palette as the Victorian hall way. The office was rounded toward the end with tall windows consisting the entire back wall. A beautiful round table with three chairs surrounding it sat off to one side of the room. Paintings of angels hung on the upper halves of the walls. Mercurio finally stopped at a golden, yet delicately intricate desk toward the back of the office. There, a man in a black suit sat. The man didn't look up from from his work.

"Please, have a seat." He gestured to the two chairs before the desk. We sat and he continued. "Tell me, miss..." He looked at a file in front of him. "Ms.L'pree. What can you recall from the night of your embrace?"

"Embrace?"

"When you were turned into a vampire." He sighed impatiently.

"Well, I remember being followed for a while. When it happened, I was pulled into a dark ally. I couldn't see who it was that attacked me. After the attack, I blacked out." As I spoke, he began writing on a note pad beside him.

"Can you remember where you were specifically?"

"I was... nearing the crescent and comet intersection by the local library."

"Saint Andrew's Library?"

"Yes."

"Can you tell me what time it was?"

"Between 8 and 8:30 pm."

"Where were you coming from?"

"Saint Mary's School of the Arts."

"And where were you going?"

"To my apartment on Nova's street in the Moonlight Apartment complex."

"When did you begin to notice you were being followed?" He asked and I deliberated.

"...Just before stepping into Courtney's Avenue. I heard footsteps behind me, but no one was there."

"How would you describe your attacker?" I was beginning to get uncomfortable remembering that night. I just wanted to forget about it. Why was he asking me these questions anyway?

"Umm.... He was... Taller. Kind of lean..."

"Did he say anything to you?" I thought very hard. I remember he whispered something. I was too scared to think anything of it so I didn't work on memorizing it. In fact, I tried forgetting the entire experience... But upon further recollection, his words began to come together.

"...'A gift of blood for the Prince'..." I mumbled slowly. The man, Lacroix, stopped writing and looked up for the first time. His steel, gray eyes were full of weight and authority.

"Pardon?"

"The man said, 'A gift of blood for the Prince.'"

"Did he say anything else?" Lacroix asked urgently. He gave me his full and undivided attention as he waited for my response. I became nervous.

"No, that was all he said." I replied defensively. The air became tense somehow. I looked to Mercurio for answers, but his expression was nonchalant. I doubted he was listening very closely. "Why are you asking me all of these questions? Are you trying to catch this guy?" Lacroix came back from his thoughts as he heard my questions.

"Yes. We're working to find your assailant. He has been charged for siring, that is, embracing an individual into the fold, without approval to do so. This is a direct Masquerade violation and is punishable by death. Finding this offender is one of our utmost priorities." He organized the notes he was writing out into a neat pile, "Your cooperation in this investigation would be most appreciated. Should you accept to aid us in this matter, Mercurio will accompany you to the Chairman of the Masquerade Enforcement for a more in depth witness testimony." He stood and nodded. "Thank you for your help thus far. Good evening Ms.L'pree, Mercurio." Lacroix looked somewhat out of sorts, still deep in thought. Mercurio nodded absently and motioned to me that we should get going.

Once we left Lacroix's office and stepped back into the elevator, I asked Mercurio about what I could do to help.

"Well, you haven't been registered as a vampire yet, so you might want to fill out your info before you do anything else." He checked his watch. "I gotta get goin' soon though. I'll take you to the Masquerade Department and have someone get your information forms for you to fill out. When you're done, hand 'em to the receptionist and they'll direct you to Theo Rogers. He's in charge of Masquerade Enforcement." The doors opened on the 23rd floor and we stepped out. This floor was similar to the first floor in all of it's chic, professional style. Mercurio walked up to the receptionist and asked for the information forms he mentioned earlier. After digging around, the receptionist handed him a binder with at least an inch or two in volume.

"The kid also needs to see Theo. She's here to give a witness testimony." The receptionist wrote something down and bid him a good day. Mercurio handed the binder to me.

"Have fun." He said sarcastically. I rolled my eyes and took a seat as he left.

The information forms took hours to fill out. The forms had questions that regarded almost every detail of my life. They wanted to know things like who my friends, family and acquaintances were, what my schooling was like, every place I had ever worked for or even applied for, residences I've lived in, memberships or activities I was currently or previously involved in, financial information, contact information, personal information, skills, talents, weaknesses, tastes, goals, etc. etc. etc.... Filling out those forms was the most boring process I've ever gone through. When I was done, I handed the binder to the receptionist. She accepted it and told me the Chairman was down the hall on the left.

When I got to the door, it opened just as I was about to knock on it, which was fairly unnerving, I might add. I pushed the door open further and saw a man sitting at a desk, looking through files. He saw me and stood with an outstretched hand.

"Hello. I'm Theo Rogers, Chairman of the Masquerade Enforcement." I took his hand. He had a strong grip.

"Nice to meet you. I'm Ebony L'pree."

"Likewise. Please, have a seat." I sat in the vacant chair on the opposite side of the table was sitting at. "You're here to give a witness testimony on the missing sire case, am I right?"

"Yes." He sat looking at some notes for a few moments. Without being too conspicuous, I glanced at the notes. They were the same ones Lacroix had been writing out.

"So just to clarify, you were on your way to Moonlight Apartments on Nova's Street from Saint Mary's School of the Arts from 8 to 8:30 on what date exactly...?"

"It was a week ago, so it would be on October 31." I chuckled darkly when I realized I had become a vampire on Halloween. He wrote down the date.

"Right, and you were attacked near Saint Andrew's Library on the crescent and comet intersection?"

"Yes, that's right."

"And you said you felt you were being followed before getting onto Courtney's Avenue, hearing footsteps when no one was around." I nodded. "What other characteristics can you tell me about the offender? Did he have a certain smell? What was he wearing? His voice?"

"Umm..." I remembered seeing his hands when he pulled me into the ally. "Well, I remember he was wearing a nice cologne and a shirt that was a darkly colored button down. His hands were cold and smooth. He didn't have any special accent in his voice."

"Did he threaten you with any weapons?"

"None." He asked me these kinds of questions for a while before I found an opportunity to ask some of my own. "Umm, can I ask you something?"

"Sure. Shoot."

"What's the Masquerade?"

"The Masquerade is a set of vampire laws designed to hide the existence of vampires from humans, or as we like to call them, kine. Masquerade violations result in penalties that can vary depending on how revealing the violation was. In your sire's case, he didn't get approval to sire you, which means you were not cleared for embrace. To be cleared, you would have had to have been approved by a committee comprised of the premogen and exposed to our kind for a measured amount of time as a fledgling. This is to prevent uninformed vampires from frenzing in public or causing some such scene." He paused from his writings and pondered. "That reminds me. We need to get you a step-sire."

"What's a sire?"

"A sire is someone who instructs a fledgling about vampirism before embracing them, making the fledgling their childe. Please excuse me for a moment, I have to make a phone call." He got up and stepped out of the room. He came back a few moments later with a cell phone against his ear. He turned the cell away from his face and asked me, "Are you free to come here on Monday?" I nodded and he turned back to his cell phone. "Yes, she'll be there." He wrote something down on a blank piece of paper and handed it to me. It read, 'Come by around 9 pm on the 14th floor. Ask for Vivian Weiss. She'll be your step-sire.' I looked back up and he had hung up the cell phone.

"Ms.L'pree it's been a pleasure. Thanks for helping us out here tonight." He shook my hand.

"Thank you. Have a good evening." I was excited to leave, it'd been a long night. Upon leaving, I noticed the ground floor was now only dotted with the sophisticated workers.

I looked at my watch, I still had an hour until sunrise. Surprisingly, I wasn't tired at all. Not even a little drowsy. I wondered if that was a vampire thing. Regardless, I was going to head straight home. I didn't want to be caught in a sunrise. I would explore the town more tomorrow night when I had more time.

Despite being a vampire, life still goes on. I had once thought that vampires were dark and seductive, but after actually becoming one, I've learned that that's not the case. I don't feel like the typical vampire that's always portrayed in books or movies. In a way, I'm kind of glad. With all the structure these people have created, it's not that different from being human. I don't know why this has happened to me or what else there is to learn about vampires, but if this is what it means to be a vampire, then life should be bearable. Hopefully.

* * *

A/n: Okay, so the story really gets rolling in the next chapter. I'm sorry if this one is kinda boring. :(


	2. To Be Political

On my way home, I picked up a newspaper and some yellow pages from a 24 hour news stand. For the rest of the day, I made a small list of errands I needed to run. The loft lacked some basic essentials that I would address as soon as the sun set.

Another thing I noticed about myself throughout the day was that I didn't feel hungry. I couldn't remember the last time I had eaten. I figured I would pick up something while running my errands if I got hungry, but if vampires didn't eat, that would be a big financial help.

During the day, I got around to checking my email and Mercurio sent me one about this blood bank at the local hospital. The blood bank sold blood to vampires who were willing to pay for it. The rest of the email went on to describe the prices and the operating hours. I was immensely relieved that I wouldn't need to kill for blood.

I didn't want to introduce myself to the landlord until I had gotten a job. It would be pretty awkward to tell whoever they were that I don't even have a stable income yet. I still had my job application for the office job I was going to apply for, so I would probably just send it in to anyone that was hiring those with just a high school diploma. I'd also have to ask if a graveyard shift was a available, but I doubted I would encounter much trouble there. I wouldn't think many employees would want to work late in the evening and into the early morning.

After reading through the yellow pages, I only came up with a few stores all the way in downtown that would be open long enough for me to get the things I needed. Were there stores in Santa Monica that carried the things I needed, I'd go there, but oddly enough there weren't any so I've no choice but to go to downtown. When the sun finally set, I went out as fast as I could to run my errands. I didn't think I should bother with bed makings or dish wear, seeing as I don't feel the need to sleep or eat. I bought a trash can, some trash can liner, and cleaning supplies. I wanted to see if I could get the rust and stains out of the toilet and shower stall.

The things I got weren't that expensive, but I was running out of money. It's the beginning of the month, so I wouldn't have to worry about rent for a while. Regardless, I would save the last few hundreds I had for it.

I put everything I bought in the trash can so I wouldn't have to carry so many bags but the cleaning supplies clunked around in the bin as I walked. I tried holding it in different ways so it wouldn't be so noisy. The method that was the most effective was to hug it against me and luckily, no one was around to see how ridiculous I looked, hugging my trash can.

As I rounded a corner on a fairly secluded street, something in the air shifted. It was so unfamiliar to me. It was too tense, too electrified. I slowed down my pace, becoming hyper aware of my surroundings. I had no idea why I was so suspicious of a quiet street but my instincts told me I should be on alert.

Nothing _looked_ strange. Maybe a bit too empty for a city, but it was still very early in the morning and people were likely still asleep. I closed my eyes and listened closely. I heard nothing in my immediate surroundings. As I concentrated more, I began to hear things from a distance. I could hear people talking a few balconies up in the hotel I just passed, something about a financial embezzlement and a lawsuit. A dog began barking two streets down from where I stood. Very faintly, I could even hear a car alarm go off even further away than the dog. I tried smelling the air. Car exhaust, greasy fast food, garbage, cigarette smoke, cheap cologne and perfume. These were the first things I noticed. But eventually, I detected a sour, metallic smell. Blood.

I have absolutely no idea what was running through my head; nothing probably but as soon as I picked up the scent of blood, I made a bee line for it. You'd think any rational person who smelled blood would want to walk _away_ from it, but I just couldn't resist. I'd compare it to smelling fresh baked cookies and eating one out of impulse.

My nose led me three blocks away. The scent became poignant and thick in the air as I drew closer to what I believed the source was. Without thinking, I looked into an ally way and found the source of the smell. I stopped dead in my tracks. A bloody heap of human remains sat at the end of the ally, illuminated by the moth-peppered, florescent street lamp hanging by a back door. Over the heap hunched a man who was at least seven feet tall. His torn clothes hung loosely on his person. As he bent to pick up a severed arm to chew on, I caught more of his profile with the little light available. His nails, no, his _claws_ were menacing, curling around the forearm. His ears were impossibly long and the length of his face resembled a dog's. I watched him bite the arm and fresh blood dripped from the hollow he left.

Mortification. Horror. Jealousy. Shock. Fear. One by one, these feelings paralyzed me as I watched him rip the flesh and meat from the bone like a drum stick. I wanted to run but I couldn't. My internal war created two gravitational forces that pulled me toward the fresh blood and the fear that urged me to run. _What's wrong with me? My legs won't move! RUN!_ I began to feel like my first night as a vampire, when I frenzied. My brain started to burn, smoldering and simmering against the back of my eyes, causing me to become unable to think straight. My muscles tensed and coiled as electrical impulses pervaded my nerves. _No. I will not frenzy here, _I thought with effort. I summoned what will power I had left and tried to step back, but my knees buckled from the effort.

The monster caught wise to my presence at the sound of my movement. He dropped the stringy bone and began to saunter toward me. Hopelessness and despair settled in a cold lump in my stomach. I was going to die here because my legs refused to move. The monster broke into a sprint only to be pushed back by gun fire. A hand grabbed my arm, hoisted me to my feet, and pushed me out of the way. A woman stepped from behind me and continued to fire at the monster. Finally, it jumped up onto the building beside it and climbed to the top, escaping. The woman eye's followed it as she spoke into a hand-held radio,

"Valkyrie to base. The target has fled. Over." The radio spat static jargon in response. The woman holstered her gun and turned to me. "You. What are you doing here? Are you aware this area is a Sabbat zone?" She waited for an answer but my mouth just hung ajar, still in shock. She sighed and spoke into her radio again. "Valkyrie to base. Civilian found at point of conflict. Bringing the civilian in for questioning." The radio replied something static again.

She continued her conversation for a bit while I found bearings. The almost-frenzy was slowly ebbing, being replaced with a head ache, soreness, and weakness. _I guess those are the side effects of frenzing_. I realized I had been hugging the trash can for dear life this entire time. I loosened my grip on it and white imprints that resembled my arms remained. The bin had yielded to my shape, almost collapsing into a flattened box. Two of the corners had torn and several holes distorted the side where my nails had dug into it. I looked inside and found one of the metal cans was a little bent but other than that, it was all intact.

The woman finished her conversation and turned to me. "You're not hurt, are you?" I shook my head. "Good. If you don't mind, I'd like for you to come down to the base with me. I'd like to ask you a few questions regarding this incident." She motioned for me to follow her and she led me to her car. It was a red corvette. I had wanted to drop my warped trash can off at home but the temptation to ride in the corvette took priority.

I got in on the passengers side excitedly. The interior was just as sexy on the inside as the outside of the car. I hardly heard the woman say her name was Vivian Weiss because I was so excited. I focused back to reality,

"You're Vivian? I'm supposed to meet with you tomorrow, right?"

"Oh? So that would mean you're my new step-childe. Ebony L'pree was it?"

"Yep. Nice to meet you," Oh whoops, I forgot. "And thank you for saving me back there." She just shrugged.

"That brings me to my first question: Why were you there?" I looked down at the trash can I had placed at my feet.

"Um, I'm not entirely sure. I smelled blood and I just followed the scent. I wasn't really thinking of what to expect."

"Hmm. When was the last time you fed?"

"I had a blood bag two days ago."

"Perhaps you're still unfamiliar with the cravings that largely characterize our plight. If there is one thing you will come to understand regarding the hunger, it's that it will never be sated. The monster within can easily take control and dealing with the beast is the single most valuable lesson a progeny can learn." She thought a moment. "As an extra precaution,you may want to feed directly from a human soon. Blood bags will sustain your unlife for a time, but as they are not fresh, they don't quite give you the satiation you need." A sinking feeling fell on my shoulders. I knew the blood bags were too convenient to be true. "Don't look so glum. I'll teach you how to feed. It's my responsibility as your sire to guide you, after all." She drove us into a parking garage and went to the fourth underground level. When it was time to get out of the car, I debated on whether I should bring my things or not. Vivian noticed my deliberation. "Just leave them. I can send for them when the time comes." I internally sighed with relief at the fact that I wouldn't have to look like a fool hugging my trash can everywhere I went.

I followed her into an elevator that took us further underground. During the ride, she asked, "By the way, you didn't happen to see what had transpired in the ally before I arrived, did you?" I shook my head.

"No, that person was already dead when I got there." My voice shrank near the end of my response. Seeing a dead person blew my mind. I still didn't know what to think of it, to be afraid... or hungry. I closed my eyes tightly. "Vivian?" She looked sideways at me, expectant. I hesitated and shook my head. "No. Nothing, never mind." I was ashamed of the way I felt. I didn't want to feel any more monstrous than I already felt and vocalizing my concerns would just make it worse.

The elevator opened on a basement level and dull, lonely, overhanging lights lit a stark corridor. Faded, white linoleum tile peeled along the bottom lining of the concrete walls of a long hallway, leading to an emergency set of stairs on one end and a right turn in the other. I followed Vivian to the turn and we were met with a metal door that looked newer than it's surroundings. She entered a four digit code on the keypad beside the door and it chirped, unlocking itself. Another stark room on the other side, but more furniture occupied it. It looked like a waiting room.

Vivian went to a mini refrigerator and grabbed a blood pack from inside. She handed it to me,

"That should tide you over for now. Wait here for a while, I need to report our sabbot friend to my superior. I'll explain some basics to you when I return." She left through the only other door in the room. I sat down, thankful for a seat. I was still tired from the almost-frenzy.

Sipping on the pouch, I looked around the room for something to occupy my thoughts. There weren't any decorations or any kind of style to detail the room. Only the basic essentials, like fold up chairs and a portable card table. On one side of the room, a small kitchen area sat. The cabinets and mini-fridge looked dusty and unattended.

I put the empty bag on the card table, refreshed. Using my arm as a pillow, I rested my head on the table and closed my eyes. How long Vivian would be? The silence in the room ringed and echoed in my ears. I tapped my foot to fill the air with some kind of life.

Bored, I got up and went to the door left through and put my ear to it. More silence. I held my breath and decided to chance a peek of what was on the other side. Turning the knob, I opened the door a fraction of an inch. It filled the stagnant room with noise and it almost seemed to echo and I cringed. I probably wasn't supposed to follow her, but I justified my bored venture with the fact that she didn't say I _wasn't_ allowed to.

I swiftly stepped through the door and closed it lightly behind me. I stood there for a moment, leaning against the door with my hands still on the knob, and studied my whereabouts. I was in a large atrium, on a cat walk off to the side of the room. The same stark features that characterized the other room reflected in this one, only on a larger scale. I tip-toed along the catwalk, spotting a small set of stairs stair. I listened closely for any voices or foot falls as I made my way toward the stairs. If I wasn't allowed here, I didn't want to take any chances, so I was on alert. I smirked, feeling like a secret agent infiltrating enemy territory. After stepping down the stairs, the first door to the right mumbled some voices.

"...be pretty important for them to assign you to be her step-sire."

"They want her trained as quickly and thoroughly as possible. I also heard Lacroix is assigning the Chairman and the entire investigation unit to her case." That was Vivian's voice. The other voice chuckled.

"Makes me wonder why they're making a fledgling's case so high priority."

"I believe you and I both know why." Vivian replied darkly. A door slammed on the inside of the room they were in and I flinched.

"There better be a damn good reason for two of my top enforcers to fail a simple interrogation mission and one of you better talk fast because the entire Cover Division is breathing down my neck about the kine casualty right now." A loud, angry voice spat with venom. After a pause, Vivian began.

"After locating the targeted Sabbat, Devin McCormic, I was about to apprehend and interrogate him when Danny alerted to me several cell phone signals closing in on my position. After becoming scarce, I learned that the signals belonged to members of the Sabbot. Their activities suggested they knew of my intentions even though this was an inside mission. By the time I had caught up with McCormic, he had killed the kine and got away. Had it not been for Danny's efforts, we wouldn't have been able to obtain the information we were after. By blue-jacking McCormic's cell phone, Danny was able to assemble the necessary information by reading his text messages. The information was verified by local Nosferatu." After Vivian stopped speaking for a moment, the voice that she had been speaking to before coughed, as if to urge her to keep speaking. "And... The fledgling named Ebony L'pree was found at the point of conflict." I sensed hesitation.

"Interesting. That's the one Lacroix's so interested in, huh? Did you learn why she was there?" The angry voice asked.

"She said she smelled blood and followed the scent, unaware of the Sabbat activity in the area."

"Hmm. Regardless of her inexperience, I don't like that one. If the rumors about her sire are true, she's going to get a lot of unwanted attention and that's going to cause conflict. I want both of you to be quiet about that little tidbit from the Cover Division for a while until I figure out how to deal with her."

"Actually, Sir. I've been assigned to act as her step-sire, so there should be no need to worry." Vivian said. After a moment, the angry voice resumed, becoming slightly empathetic but only slightly.

"I don't envy you, Weiss. But it's probably for the best that you're the one siring her." I hear shuffling.

"Take care that you guide her well. She's going to need as much foresight as she can ge-" The door opened and knocked against my forehead. Surprised, I stumbled back. Oh shit.

A burly man, the one who presumably owned the angry voice, glared daggers at me; he looked about ready to kill me. Vivian stood behind him with her palm against her face, embarrassed no doubt. The one with the remaining voice had to have been Danny. He was was trying to disguise his giggling as a coughing fit.

"Who the hell are you and what the fuck are you doing on my floor?" He grabbed my collar of my shirt and hoisted me up, pulling me right up to his angry glare. Vivian put her hand on his wrist,

"Easy. She's my step-childe, Ebony." That didn't seem to help very much. He glared at me some more before he loosened his grip and finally let go of my shirt.

"Get in here, kid." He hissed. I stiffly shuffled through the door, apprehensive. _Jeez, did this guy have a temper on him or what? Sca~ry!_ "How much did you hear?"

"I didn't hear an-"

"Spare me the bullshit, just tell me how much you heard." He snapped and I hesitated. What's going to happen to me if I say I heard all of it? I _really_ didn't want this guy's fist in my face. I looked over to Vivian and she nodded in encouragement.

"...Since before you came in." I mumbled slowly, squeezing my eyes tightly. I tensed my shoulders and bent my arms a bit, ready to get into a defensive position. After a moment of silence, I chanced a peek at The Hulk. He was pinching the bridge of his nose, taking a deep breath.

"Don't do that again." He commanded flatly and I nodded furiously. "So you know about our little mission."

"Yeah." I whispered. He sighed, annoyed.

"Well, since you know so much about it so far, I might as well include you." He thought a little more about it. "Yeah, actually you could be of use to this operation."

"Who are you?" I asked.

"The name's Dale. I'm captain of the Field Operations Unit for the Masquerade Enforcement. In my opinion, it's a thankless line of work. No one up top give's a rats ass about what we do." He took a seat behind an old, rusted table. "But enough of my bitching, we just found a large concentration of Sabbat and we need to get rid of it. It's too close to an important event Lacroix is hosting; something about merging with a smaller company." He waved his hand in small circles, gesturing toward his lack of concern for the whole rendezvous. "Point is, he won't cancel, relocate, or reschedule it. He won't even let any of the enforcers inside, saying his body guards will be enough security and that we'd only cause a ruckus. So all we can do is try to handle the Sabbat hive as quietly as possible and that takes time. With the amount of Sabbat in the area, we're not even sure if we can handle them all. So in case a few get loose, we need someone to get in there and warn the securtiy if trouble is on the way."

"I miss the days when the Sabbot were stupid and unorganized." Sighed Danny, leaning on a wall behind me.

"Don't we all." Vivian lit a cigarette.

"Hold on, who are the Sabbot?" I'm getting so lost right now.

"The Sabbat are a rogue sect of vampires comprised of antitribu from the seven kindred clans of the Camarilla. Their mission statement is to compromise the Masquerade and dominate all kine. They didn't used to be a threat though; they'd just blindly run into firing range and that was that, but ever since a sarcophagus containing an Antediluvian was stolen around six months ago, clan antribu skyrocketed and the Sabbat became more powerful than ever. With all the diablerie going around in the sect, they've been gaining all the benefits each clan has to offer, most notably from Gangrel, Brujah, and Malkavians."

"So the one who stole the sarcophagus is leading the Sabbat?" I assumed. The three shared looks and Danny continued,

"Well, that's what everyone's guessing. There isn't any solid evidence leading to the thief or to a new Sabbat leader, they haven't even been connected yet, but both events happened at the same time so it's pretty safe to assume that's the case."

"We're getting off topic people, focus." Dale interjected quickly. "So Ebony, your role in all this is to get Weiss into the event Lacroix's hosting by getting yourselves invitations so that she can keep the body guards posted if there's any trouble. There probably won't be any trouble but I'm not taking any chances."

"How am I supposed to do that? And didn't you say enforcers weren't allowed inside?"

"Since Lacroix is so interested in you, you'll be able to get the invitations easily, and since Weiss is your new sire, they can't refuse her." I was about to ask what relevance I had to Lacroix when I heard something vibrate. Dale pulled a cell phone from his pocket. "Dammit, now the Kine Data Unit is getting on my back. Weiss, Perry, take the rest of the night off. I need to go deal with some more paper work." Groaning, he got up and answered his cell phone, opening the door on his side of the room and disappearing through it.

"Sorry about the captain's temper. He's really a softie when you get to know him." Danny consoled me. He seemed to be a lot friendlier than Dale.

"I don't think I can picture that guy as anything but intimidating." I said, turning to Danny. He laughed.

"I remember I got the same impression when I first met him." He stuck out a hand. "By the way, I'm Danny. I'm your new sire's partner." I hated how I had already figured his name by eavesdropping.

"Nice to meet you." I shook his hand. "Can you tell me more about this event?"

"From what I've heard, the function is a welcoming ball for the merge of a smaller, but crucial company into the Lacroix Foundation. Anyway, the ball is being thrown tomorrow and unfortunately, it's going to take us all day to prepare for the Sabbat dispersion, so the mission is going to have to occur at the same time as the ball.

"For you though, all you need to do is glam up and go to the party so you might as well just have some fun." He winked.

"But I don't have anything to wear for it, and how do I actually get a hold of the invitations?" I fretted. Vivian finished her cigarette and added,

"Don't worry about that, someone in the unit will call and get them for you. As for the outfit, we can get you a dress and some jewlery to borrow from storage."

"You have things like that laying around?"

"They're for undercover operations." She checked her watchand turned to Danny. "It's getting early, so we'll be on our way. Good work tonight, Danny. I owe you one."

"Now that you bring it up, I do have a favor to ask, but it's for Ebony. That is, if you don't mind, Vivian."

"Not at all."

"Me? What could I do?" I was surprised at how useful I seemed to be.

"The merge of this new company isn't just to gain a business asset; the company that's merging with the Lacroix Foundation has also had a very close financial history with one of Lacroix's rival companies. To prevent any double-dealing, I've been assigned the ever-so-noble task of hacking into their personal data base to see if they've had any recent activity with the rival. Now, I could do that from here in the base, but there's a good chance I'll be detected. So to be on the safe side, I'd like to take advatage of the ball. Key representatives will be attending and if I can hack into their cell phones, I'll be able to get access into their data base. But as you know, enforcers aren't allowed to attend."

"It seems this 'no enforcers allowed' thing is really getting in the way for something as trivial as appearances."

"That's politics for you." He pulled out a small, metal square from his pocket. "This chip, when placed on a local network, will intercept any cellular activity and direct it to me without being traced. I want you to find the network in the establishment and place this chip on it. It's wireless, so you don't have to worry about knowing how to use it. Once I have the connection, getting into their data base will be no problem." He handed the chip to me.

"I'll do it, but why do I, specifically, have to do it?"

"Other than the fact that Vivian will be busy collaborating with security and the enforcers, the network is in a room only accessible with Lacroix's permission and it seems he'll pull all the stops for you so I'm sure he'll let you in."

"But what do I say? How do I approach him?" From the impression I got from him, he didn't seem like the 'Hey! What's up?' type.

"I wouldn't worry about it. I'm sure he has a lot more to say to you than you might think. Anyway the sun will be up soon and I don't want to keep you held up so take care."

"Thanks again, Danny. Have a good morning." Vivian opened the door I had come through and I followed after her. As we retraced our steps the way we came, I asked,

"Vivian? Why am I so relevant to Lacroix?"

"Though everyone has been forming ther own assumptions, no one knows precisely why yet. The only indication is that he is setting your case on high-priority."

"Why would he do that?" Vivian hesitated to answer. We got into her car and I was begining to think she wouldn't until she said,

"For the past six months, Lacroix has only focused on one case and that's the search for the antediluvian thief. Now that yours tops the list, rumor has it that your case may be either a lead or..." She narrowed her eyes grimly. "...Or your sire is the thief."

"So my sire might have commited a theft but why would that make _me_ important?"

"I should probably explain what an Antediluvian is before I tell you." She sighed at my ignorance. "An Antediluvian is an elder vampire who has founded one of the thirteen kindred clans. They are vampires of tremendous power and to diablerise one, or in otherwords drain them of their blood, would transfer their power to the killer. There isn't a vampire around who wouldn't want that kind of power and that's one of the reasons why diablerie is illegal.

"Any dimwit knows that the thief diablerised the Antediluvian. That's a given. The Camarilla are on the bloodhunt for him for the public reason being that he stole the Antediluvian but secretly, anyone would love to drain him dry for power and out of everyone, no one wants to more than Lacroix. For more than two centuries, he's been infamous for being hungry for power. He'll stop at nothing to find the thief and drain him. For him to lower the immediacy of the Antediluvian case for yours so soon after your brief meeting with him yesterday must mean there's a connection between the two cases." Her tone lowered and she became very serious. "Ebony. Whatever transpired in that meeting was paramount in swaying Lacroix's attention to your case. In all honesty, can you tell me what may have inspired him to make the change?" I thought back to yesterday's meeting with him.

"Yeah, he started acting strangely after I told him what my sire told me."

"What did he say?" Now Vivian was acting similarly to Lacroix's reaction.

"He said, 'A gift of blood for the Prince'." The car stopped suddenly, so much so that I could hear the tires squeal. I think my face would have collided the windshield had it not been for my seatbelt. I looked to Vivian to see why she stopped the car so suddenly. "What's wrong?" I asked. She was leaning over the steering wheel.

"That confirms it." Her voice shook.

"Confirms what?"

"It confirms that you have the blood of an Antediluvian." She faced me quickly. "Ebony, Lacroix is the Prince of the Camarilla! The fact that your sire said that means that he is giving the blood of the Antediluvian to Lacroix! Your sire is the one that stole the sarcophagus!" She looked away, as if in her own thoughts. "That would also explain why they want you trained so quickly. They want to confirm your blood by having you demonstrate your power." She looked back to me. "Ebony. It's very important that you never let yourself be alone with Lacroix. Now that he suspects you of having Antediluvian blood, there's no doubt that he'll try to diablerise you when it's confirmed. And don't tell anyone about what your sire said to you. Am I making myself clear?"

"W-wha...uh. Okay. Okay, Vivian. I'll stay away from Lacroix and I won't tell anyone what I heard." I was so confused and Vivian was starting to concern me. After I promised, she leaned over and pulled the handle of my car door, pushing it open in the process.

"Good. Now hurry inside; the sun will rise soon." She commanded. I warily got out and shut the car door. She sped off, her tires squealed when she made a turn onto a new street. I could still hear her engine roar as she sped even further away.

* * *

A/n: I'm really sorry if it seems abrupt at the end. I'm really tired and hungry and very excited to post it and I did and now i'm rambling and holy sugar mother trucker i'm tired and now i'm going to bed g'night *dies*


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